Corticotropin-releasing factor family

Corticotropin-releasing factor family
Identifiers
Symbol	CRF
Pfam	PF00473
InterPro	IPR000187
PROSITE	PDOC00442
SCOP	1goe
Available protein structures: Pfam structures PDB RCSB PDB; PDBe PDBsum structure summary

Corticotropin-releasing factor, CRF is a family of related neuropeptides in vertebrates. This family includes corticotropin-releasing hormone, urotensin-I, urocortin and sauvagine form a family . The family can be grouped into 2 separate paralogous lineages, with urotensin-I, urocortin and sauvagine in one group and CRF forming the other group. Urocortin and sauvagine appear to represent orthologues of fish urotensin-I in mammals and amphibians, respectively. The peptides have a variety of physiological effects on stress and anxiety, vasoregulation, thermoregulation, growth and metabolism, metamorphosis and reproduction in various species, and are all released as prohormones.^[1]

Corticotropin-releasing hormone(CRH) ^[2] is a hormone found mainly in the paraventricular nucleus of the mammalian hypothalamus that regulates the release of corticotropin (ACTH) from the pituitary gland. From here, CRF is transported to the anterior pituitary, stimulating adrenocorticotropic hormone (ACTH) release via CRF type 1 receptors, thereby activating the hypothalamic–pituitary–adrenal axis (HPA) and thus glucocorticoid release.

CRH is evolutionary related to a number of other active peptides. Urocortin acts in vitro to stimulate the secretion of adrenocorticotropic hormone. Urotensin is found in the teleost caudal neurosecretory system and may play a role in osmoregulation and as a corticotropin-releasing factor. Urotensin-I is released from the urophysis of fish, and produces ACTH and subsequent cortisol release in vivo. The nonhormonal portion of the prohormone is thought to be the urotensin binding protein (urophysin). Sauvagine (P01144), isolated from frog skin, has a potent hypotensive and diuretic effect.

Subfamilies

• Urocortin IPR003620
• Diuretic hormone IPR003621

Human proteins from this family

CRH; UCN;

References

1. ^ Balment RJ, Lovejoy DA (1999). "Evolution and physiology of the corticotropin-releasing factor (CRF) family of neuropeptides in vertebrates". Gen. Comp. Endocrinol. 115 (1): 1–22. PMID 10375459. 
2. ^ Lederis KP, Okawara Y, Richter D, Morley SD (1990). "Evolutionary aspects of corticotropin releasing hormones". Prog. Clin. Biol. Res. 342: 467–472. PMID 2200028. 

This article includes text from the public domain Pfam and InterPro IPR000187